


The Responsible One

by eris



Category: Hikaru no Go
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-02-14
Updated: 2006-02-14
Packaged: 2017-10-03 10:21:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eris/pseuds/eris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This holiday is absurd.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Responsible One

It's only an exhibition game that means nothing in the greater scheme of rankings, but with all the parties and after-party-parties and papers clamoring for the latest sensational rumours to sweep through a game most of the country still considers the official national past-time of the geriatric, it's not until long after nightfall Touya finally escapes the press. His head is pounding from the camera flashes, the constant smiling, the diplomatic Chinese and Korean buzzing in his brain until nothing makes sense any longer, not even the Japanese. All he can think as he retreats down the empty hotel hallways is that he'd like a hot shower and a pleasant eight hour coma, and that if anyone tries to stop him on the way to his room he's not sure what he'll be capable of.

He's fumbling for his key card when his eyes come to rest on the next door over.

When Shindou opens the door, he's rubbing at his eyes and squinting into the light, and Touya has the grace to look a little contrite. "Were you sleeping?"

"No," Shindou says thickly, and pulls his fingers through his fringe.

"So you were sitting in the dark?"

Shindou folds his arms over his chest with a scowl. "When you knock on my door at ten to midnight I should be asking the questions, asshole."

Touya's lip twitches, but he only says, "I just got back."

Shindou makes an unintelligible grunting noise and steps out of the way, so Touya follows him into the room.

"You're too nice," Shindou says, crossing the room to the table by the window. He sweeps a few plastic cups, a paper plate and at least a dozen decorative pink and red candy boxes into the bin beneath, and unfolds his magnetic goban in the cleared space. "That's why they never leave you alone. Turn on that light and I kill you."

With the curtains drawn back, the city lights streaming through the window are just bright enough Touya can navigate his way to the table without tripping over any scattered articles of clothing and landing on scattered greeting cards. He wrinkles his nose and sinks into the chair opposite Shindou. "They don't leave you alone either, you sneak off without telling anyone. Have you been _drinking_?"

Shindou's scowling again. "No. I mean, yeah, no. I'm not drunk."

Touya drops two stones onto the goban. "So when I'm stuck in photo shoots for Weekly Go you're in your hotel room sulking with the complimentary champagne."

Shindou takes black, lays his stone, drops his chin onto his hand. "Well, you won anyway, your burden."

Touya eyes him sharply for a minute, but Shindou's only looking at the goban, absently gnawing his lower lip, and Touya sighs. "I think all night long I answered maybe ten questions about the game." He scubs his palm across his eyes and motions toward the boxes on the floor. "And nine hundred about whether or not either of us is dating anyone and whom and how long and how serious and whether we'd had plans, as though we'd have any time for them. Thirteen girls asked me to bring you their chocolates. Honestly, Shindou, must you encourage--"

Shindou only snorts, loudly. "You haven't been to your own room yet."

Touya massages the bridge of his nose and lays a stone. "This holiday is absurd."

Shindou makes a noncommittal noise, and attempts to extend out of atari only to have the stone slip from his fingers, bounce over the edge of the table and roll into the indeterminate shadows of the carpet beneath.

"Shindou," Touya hisses, and slaps Shindou's hand away from the goke. "You're _drunk_."

"I'm _not_," but Touya's already standing, taking the three steps, pulling at Shindou's arms. Despite the height advantage, Shindou has something like twenty pounds on him, so it's a futile effort until Shindou grows annoyed with the pawing and stands on his own, shoving Touya's arms from his and nearly losing his balance over the chair in the process. "Off--"

Touya takes advantage of the unsteady footing to give Shindou's arm a solid yank, causing him to stumble forward and nearly overturn the table. "You idiot. I'm not leaving until you go to bed."

"What the hell," Shindou demands at the air, but he regains his balance and composure quickly, so that the element of surprise is no longer working in Touya's favour. "You're not my _mother_."

"Well you clearly need one around," Touya snaps back. "Bed, Shindou, or when she asks me how you behaved I'll actually tell her the truth."

It's too dark to really see, but he can practically hear Shindou's eyes rolling. Shindou throws up his hands in a petulant surrender, marches to the bed and flops onto his back fully dressed and all but sticking out his tongue. "Happy? Mother?"

Touya keeps a skeptical eye on Shindou as long as possible while he locates a clean glass and makes his way to the bathroom to fill it with water. Then back to Shindou's bedside, where Shindou's face is contorting into the most incredulous look possible on so little sleep. "Are you serious? Touya, I'm not even dr--"

Touya places his travel-sized bottle of aspirin on the nightstand. "Drink it and take these or you'll be sorry in the morning."

Shindou blinks, then. "Touya Akira," he says slowly, shaping every syllable deliberately, but in the light slanting through from the bathroom it's clear he's almost smiling. "Touya Akira did not just give me advice on hangover prevention."

Touya does not dignify this with a response, but holds the glass in front of Shindou's face until Shindou finally takes it for sheer annoyance. "You're a bastard."

"And you're an irresponsible fool." Touya extends two aspirin next.

Shindou grabs the hand and pulls it, and the next thing Touya knows he's sprawled on Shindou's chest and Shindou's breath is damp and warm against his cheek. "Shindou--"

Shindou hooks an arm around his neck, pulls his head down and kisses him.

It's slow, lazy, like something half-awake and half a dream. Shindou's lips are soft and dry on his, but Shindou's tongue is just a little too insistent to chalk anything up to an accident of champagne. And that's all Touya can think with Shindou's tongue sweeping across his bottom lip and sliding warm and wet into his mouth, his own hair falling across his eyes and Shindou's face, and he's starting to feel a little dizzy and all he can think is, _doesn't taste like alcohol at all_.

When Shindou's arm slides down so that only his hand rests against Touya's neck, calloused fingers tracing circles there, Touya pulls back a little and breathes.

"Shindou," he tries to say, but he suspects his throat fails to form the sounds, because Shindou only murmurs indistinctly against his mouth. Touya finds himself wondering if he can feel the heat on his face, his heartbeat through his clothes. "Shindou," he tries again.

"Mmh," Shindou breathes. "Quiet."

Touya tries to make sense of the expression on Shindou's face, but the warmth beneath him makes his eyelids feel so very heavy. And he expects he should have a thousand questions piling in his brain, but despite the outrageously low probability of Shindou offering reasonable suggestions, all he can think is that right now Shindou has exactly the right idea, and that he's already answered too many questions today, and that maybe this holiday isn't all bad.

Shindou turns his head to rest his forehead against Touya's, and Touya lets his eyes fall shut.


End file.
